Promise of a Lifetime
by SethMaxwell06
Summary: In a dream, two young boys meet; one a child who is hated by all and the other a prince misundertood by his people. Both destined for greatness. What bonds will they form in this paradise all their own? What bonds are worth a promise to last a life time?


Yeah... I went there. I finally broke down and started watching the Thundercats reboot a couple of days ago (at least episodes I could find anyway) and I liked it. And while I was washing dishes today, this little thing came to mind. I kinda got my inspiration from a SasuNaru doujinshi I read a long time ago and thought the idea was cute, but I tried to make the idea my own as well. Plus I think I was just in the mood for something adorable since my pet snake died together. So this is my pick me up!

Totally wrote this on the spot and I actually haven't checked for any spell errors or grammer although I'm usually good when it comes to those things. But if you spot anything let me know. Anyway, hope you guys enjoy this! I had fun writing it.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or Thundercats. They belong to their creators who aren't me!

**Warnings:** None really unless you don't like cute, fluffy shonen-ai. But it's only just a tiny bit

Pairing: Lion-O x Naruto

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**Promise of a Lifetime**

_Thundercats 2011/Naruto crossover_

Wide blue eyes blinked away the brightness of the sun that shone over head before gazing around in fascination. Naruto's brows furrowed with a hint of confusion as he took in the scenery. Didn't he just fall asleep? Why did he, without warning, find himself outside instead? And it wasn't even an area he was familiar with either. But he had to admit, it was nice.

The grass was soft under his feet and the air smelled of flowers. All around him as far as the eye could see, there was nothing but grass and blossoms in many shades of the rainbow. Yet what stood out the most was a grand tree, its branches stretching high into the sky. The eight year old wondered if he could touch the clouds if he climbed those branches.

Without a hint of apprehension, Naruto swiftly jogged over to the tree, savoring the coolness of the shade as soon as he stepped under. The leaves rusted overhead as a breeze passed along guiding the clouds to far off places. The blond boy stared in awe, reaching out to touch the tree. It felt old and sturdy under his hand, a welcoming sensation to him. It felt like home.

Smiling, Naruto carefully began to circle the tree inspecting to see if there was any branches low enough to climb. Caught up in his search, he didn't notice another boy in his path until they crashed into each other. Both yelped, clearly startled as they tumbled back onto their butts.

Groaning, Naruto rubbed his head and focused his attention on who he crashed into. The apology on his lips fell away as he stared at the other boy. He appeared around his age and height, perhaps a tiny bit taller than him. But he was the strangest boy he had ever seen! He looked like a cross between a cat and a person; instead of normal skin he was covered in a very fine layer of pale peach and tan fur. His eyes were a blue-green color and his hair was a vibrant red. His clothing suggested he was someone important considering the design and the material it was made from.

"Ow, that hurt," the cat boy mumbled rubbing his head as well. Turning to Naruto, he blinked as he stared at him and for a moment, all they did was gaze at each other.

Feeling wary and self conscious, Naruto frowned muttering, "What are you staring at?"

"Ah, nothing," the boy replied, "I've just never seen a cat like you before, except you don't look much like a cat."

Flushing, Naruto exclaimed, "I'm not a cat! I'm a human!"

"Hey don't get angry at me! I didn't know!" the other boy shouted, blushing as well.

Huffing, Naruto crossed his arms and looked away pouting. This boy was strange and weird looking, should he even be talking to him? But, it was an honest mistake he supposed. The cat boy didn't know what Naruto was and Naruto certainly didn't know what the boy was. He did look like a cat though, so maybe he was a demon cat or something? It was confusing.

Nibbling on his lip, he glanced back at the boy who was muttering to himself as he moved to stand up. He dusted himself off before holding his hand out to Naruto, who gazed at it in surprise. He could count on one hand how many people had ever been nice to him in his life, so it wasn't surprising that he was suspicious. And yet something about the boy seemed honest and trustworthy, there was a look in his eyes that calmed his reservations.

Hesitantly, Naruto took the hand and stood murmuring softly, "Thanks."

"No problem," the boy said, "My name is Lion-O, future King of the Thundercats!"

Naruto smiled, "I'm Naruto, future Hokage of Konoha!"

Lion-O grinned, "Nice to meet you! But hey, do you know where we are?"

Naruto shook his head, "No, the last thing I remember is laying in bed getting ready to sleep."

"Same here," Lion-O commented frowning thoughtfully, "Does this mean we're dreaming?"

"I don't know," Naruto groaned, "But this place is nice. It feels calm and safe, like I'm…"

"Home?" Lion-O finished, "I feel the same. It's really strange."

"What should we do?'

"I don't know," Lion-O replied frowning. He thought for a moment before asking, "Do you want to play?"

"Huh?" Naruto squeaked surprised.

"I asked do you want to play with me? You seem like you're fun and who knows how long we'll be here! We can play games!"

"You… actually want to play with me?" Naruto asked, seemingly awed by this.

Lion-O frowned tilting his head slightly, "Of course, why wouldn't I?"

Shuffling, the blond frowned, "In my village, no one ever wants to play with me or be around me… they hate me."

Blue-green eyes softened. A clawed hand reached out and ruffled Naruto's hair startling the young boy. He blinked as Lion-O smiled warmly at him. Petting his hair, he said, "Well I don't hate you and you don't seem so bad. So we can definitely play together!"

Sky blue eyes watered faintly before Naruto nodded and beamed happily. His heart felt elated at the thought of having a friend to play with. Since as far back as he could remember, he had only ever wanted someone to care about him and love him. But the villagers hated him and whispered things behind his back, called him a monster and a demon. And it always hurt. But now he had Lion-O! His very first friend!

"Okay then, tag!" Naruto shouted, quickly poking Lion-O in the side and dashing off. The young prince blinked caught off guard by the gesture. But then a grin curled on his face and he laughed as he gave chase to his new friend.

The hours seemed to pass in minutes as the two boys tussled about and played games. And when they rested, they would lay under the shade of the tree, pointing out the shape of clouds and talking about their lives. Lion-O thought that Konoha sounded amazing and Naruto claimed he wanted to visit Thundera as soon as possible. There was peace and happiness between the pair whose fates became more and more intertwined. But their paradise couldn't last.

Naruto felt it first, the stirring in the back of his mind. He didn't understand how he knew, only that he did. Frowning, he sat up and looked around ignoring Lion-O's curious gaze. Yes, it was as he feared. Everything around them was slowly fading. They were waking up. Lion-O noticed as well and tensed, suddenly anxious. What if he never saw Naruto again? He didn't want to be parted from his new companion! It was too soon!

"Lion-O," Naruto murmured, his voice small and fearful. The young prince focused on the blond whose eyes were slowly filling with tears.

"Shhh, it's okay Naruto," Lion-O whispered reaching out to brush them away.

"I don't want to leave you! I don't want to be alone again!" the human sobbed. It broke Lion-O's heart to see the other boy in such pain. He hugged him close, mentally wishing to remain. Perhaps if he held on tight enough, he could bring Naruto with him. Yet something in him knew that it wasn't going to work, that it wasn't time yet.

"It's okay Naruto," he reassured once more, "I promise we'll see each other again!"

"How? How can you be sure it'll happen?" Naruto sniffled wiping his eyes.

Frowning, Lion-O thought quickly. After a minute, his eyes widened and grin spread on his face. Swiftly looking around, he reached out and picked a single red flower. Naruto observed curiously as Lion-O worked with delicate precision, twining the stem of the flower into a loop and tying it off. Taking Naruto's right hand, he slipped the crude ring onto his finger and beamed happily.

"There! Now you're my fiancé!"

"Fiance?" Naruto inquired, not understanding.

Lion-O nodded, "Father told me that when you like someone and want to spend forever with them, you give them a ring to show that they're your fiancé. And then one day you marry your fiancé and spend your lives together."

"Oh," Naruto said looking over the flower ring, smiling.

"Which means that one day when we get married, you can help me rule Thundera! You'll be my Queen!"

"Really?"

"Yup!"

"Okay!" Naruto agreed smiling. It sounded like fun. Although he wouldn't be Hokage, being Queen didn't sound bad. It was pretty much the same thing right? He would be able to rule over people and protect them! And he got to be with Lion-O forever! It sounded amazing.

Following Lion-O's example, Naruto picked a nearby blue flower and with a little fiddling, wove it into a similar ring. He then took the young prince's hand and slipped the ring onto his finger. Beaming, he exclaimed, "Now we match!"

"Yeah," Lion-O agreed, "I promise Naruto, we'll meet again and I'll stay with you forever. We'll get married and watch over Thundera together."

"Yes," Naruto said, "It's a promise."

Feeling a mixture of giddiness and exhaustion, the pair laid back down amongst the grass their hands clasped together. They smiled at each other as their eyes began to droop, the world fading around them leaving nothing behind but a sea of white.

Groaning, Naruto rolled over and snuggled into his pillow feeling the warmth of the early morning sun peaking through his window. Frowning, his blue eyes opened slowly his thoughts jumbled and disoriented. He laid among his sheets and pillows for several minutes before his alarm went off rousing him further. Sighing, he reached out and shut it off before sitting up.

Yawning, he stretched his arms over his head. He was having such a pleasant dream too. It was upsetting that he had to wake up. After all, his dream had certainly been better than his reality. Sighing, he stared sadly at his sheets thinking, "I wish it had been real. It would be nice to know that I have someone somewhere waiting for me."

A soft brush of air fluttered through the open window and stirred something red to his right. Frowning, Naruto focused on the item before his eyes widened in shock. There on his hand was the red flower ring. Gaping, he held up his hand to inspect it closely unable to believe it. It was real, he could smell and touch it.

"Lion-O," he whispered before smiling.

Crawling toward the window, he pushed the curtains aside and folded his arms on the sill, resting his head there. His eyes gazed up at the sky, imaging the stars and worlds that lay beyond. Hope filled him that one day their promise would be fulfilled. Until then, he would wait patiently for Lion-O. After all, he was worth it.

Meanwhile on a distant world, the young prince Lion-O awoke from his bed. He blinked sleepily and rubbed at his eyes, brushing the drowsiness from them. He sat for a moment, his mind slowly awakening as well. Then the images and memory came back in a rush causing him to blink in confusion. Comprehension settled once fully awake and his dreams returned; a young human child with vibrant blond hair was golden as the sun and blue eyes to match the sky.

Looking at his hand, his heart swelled when he saw upon it the flower ring Naruto had crafted for him. Lion-O smiled. He didn't know how or when, but he believed in their promise. One day when he was older and stronger, he would find Naruto and bring him to Thundera to be his queen. And then they would never be apart, they would always be together ruling over their kingdom and protecting their people.

Hugging his hand close to his chest, he whispered, "I promise Naruto, I'll find you and we'll be together again. Just wait for me."

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Told you it was disgustingly adorable. I have a weakness for cute things! But honestly what did you think? I pondered making a sequel but we'll see what happens or if my brain can produce anything. Because it is kinda mean to leave it like this. So there definitely might be a sequel in the future. I just need to actually watch the whole season instead of just coming across random episodes. So anyone know any good places to watch all the episodes, let me know!

But yeah, thanks for reading. Hope you enjoyed it and reviews would be appreciated! Thank you!

**~Seth**


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